Earlier in our Jan/Feb issue of AFBR, we highlighted the growing fusion of ice cream with drink and vice versa, as players seek to capitalise on the growing demand for ice cream especially during the very dry season.
To follow-up with this trend, in China specifically, a major high-end spirits manufacturer, Kweichow Moutai has partnered with Mengniu Dairy to launch Moutai ice cream. The popularity has gone viral with consumers sharing the launch over social media. The market seems bullish over such cross-industry cooperation.
In recent years, several Chinese beverage players have also partnered with leading ice cream retailers to create innovative ice cream flavors. For example, major dairy producer Yili Group cooperated with Costa Coffee. Luzhou Laojiao Group, a leading Chinese liquor producer from Sichuan province, cooperated with local ice cream brand Chicecream and launched products that integrated spirits and milk. Other partnerships include Unilever with local milk tea producer Nayuki.
Ice cream seems to show a remarkable level of flexibility for product differentiation, and during the pandemic, it also displays an increasing level of emotional attachment with consumers who spent more of their time at home, making it easier to be promoted.
The ice cream market in China has now surpassed the US, and from 2015 – 2021, sales of ice cream skyrocketed from Rmb 90 billion (US$13.3 billion) to Rmb 160 billion (US$23.7 billion), according to research done by Qianzhan Industry Research Institute. Despite being the largest market, China’s per capita consumption (2.9kg) is still low compared to other countries signifying huge growth potential. According to GlobalData, global average per capita for ice cream consumption is 4.5kg.
According to a statement by Zhu Danpeng, a food and beverage industry analyst, ice cream is one of the favourite categories for the younger consumers, as such ice cream companies are collaborating with well-known brands from other industries like alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, confectionery and even major entertainment venues to attract consumer attention and expand their market shares.
Based on research from KuRunData and Mintel, the top 3 reasons for Chinese consumers to buy ice cream are novelty appeal i.e. the crave to try new tastes, to reward themselves, or as an after-dinner desserts.
